//------------------------------//
// The First Steps  
// Story: Time for a Little Magic 
// by Sketch-Pad 
//------------------------------//

	Twilight began to make her way down the stair staircase, Ember right in front of her. A lingering smile was still on the purple pony's face, and the excitement that radiated from the mare was enough to make anypony happy. 
"My first task!" She thought to herself in her head. "I should be able to take care of the dragon, but it won't exactly be easy.  She gave a little skip as she reached the bottom of the stairs. "I can do this, I'm sure of it!" Laughter in front of her cut off her happy thoughts. 
"You are sure excited about this, aren't you?" Ember asked, a giggle in his tone. He was smiling too, and he was certainly amused with Twilight's reactions. 
"I haven't been this excited since the time I got my Cutie Mark!" Twilight exclaimed. 
"Well, that's very good to hear, Clover." He cleared his throat. "We should make a quick little stop at my place before we head out, just so we can get a few things for the trip."
Twilight Nodded. "Yes, I agree, That would probably be a good idea, especially if it will take a while to get where ever it is that we are going."
"The cave just a little north of the Capital," He added quickly. "And in any case, It's about a three to five day walk, depending on how well you manage your time, though sometimes it's even less if you don't stop at night." Ember explained. "It should give us good enough time to know each other."
Twilight cheeks flushed pink, mainly because she felt uncomfortable. He had just met her, and he was already trying to make a move on her? "Geesh. He could have contained his thoughts a little longer." She thought to herself. 
Ember had watched her blush uncomfortably, and he tried to fix it. "Well, not in that kind of way, you know, unless you would like for it to be that way," He pondered. Twilight gave him a disapproving look. "But I can see you don't! I just thought that since we will both be doing things for Starswirll, er, well, you'll be learning from him, but, It would be good to know each other a little bit, right?" 
Twilight stuck out her tongue, but didn't look at the stallion. His rambling still wasn't helping much. 
"Right?" Ember asked again. 
Twilight only flicked her ear in response. She had gotten used to colts and a few mares hitting on her before, and she's been getting better at being able to turn them down. The first few times she didn't like turning them down, mainly because she didn't like to make others feel bad. Celestia had helped guide her though, which made things easier. The only thing different about this stallion was that he didn't know she was a princess. That was often the first reason ponies hit on her in the first place. 
"Well, in any case, we're here." Ember said, looking at a row of houses, all squished together. Most of these houses looked the same, but some were better cared for than others. Ember walked up to the one door that had a small, rectangular box of flowers hanging from the window above the door. 
Twilight followed him in, and she sighed. The door had opened to a stone hallway with a wooden floor, one that would sometimes creak when you would take a step. There were a few paintings up on the wall, some done very well of a particulary large family, and a few others more random paintings that looked like they had been done by a foal or two. They brought Twilight's mind back to her younger years, and they made her smile as she studied them. 
Ember had called down the house to his family to let him know that he had arrived, if they didn't hear it from the door banging against the hinges as it closed. Twilight had eventually pulled her attention away from the paintings and walked into a little living room, one that was connected to a little kitchen. She Was looking at the simple chandelier that hung from the ceiling, when she head loud, stomping hoofsteps flying down a staircase behind a wall that was on her right. She turned her head just in time to sea a small little colt fly from the staircase towards Ember. 
Ember had raised his hooves just in time to catch the smaller unicorn, and then he tossed him back up into the air, then proceeded to catch him again and give him a heartfelt hug. He was adorable, and he looked so much like the colt he had jumped on. His pelt was a slightly darker gray though, and his mane was more brown than red. 
"I'm glad you're home brother! Mom just started making supper!" The little colt said, a happy tone in his voice. 
"Oooh, What is she making?" Ember asked him, a smile on his face. 
"Dandelion Stew! Your favorite!" The small foal yelled, raising his hooves in the air as he talked. 
More hoofsteps came down the stairs, and while they were on the louder side, they weren't stomping. Twilight blinked her eyes several times at the two teenaged mares that stood on the staircase. They each had a pale gray coat, and a red-violet mane that was pulled to opposing sides in a braid. They were perfectly identical, other than how their hair was braided and their cutie marks. One of them looked at Twilight, and spoke in a flat tone, "It looks like Ember brought a mare-friend home." 
The three new ponies turned and looked at Twilight, whom she gave a shy smile to. She looked at Ember, whom she was expecting to introduce her to his family. 
Just at that moment, a white mare with a purple mane walked into the room, a little smile on her face. She was mixing a bowl of something green intently with her blue colored magic. While she had age lines around her mouth and eyes, she looked very cheerful. Her mane was pulled back into a somewhat messy bun, and an apron had been tied around her body. In all honesty, she reminded Twilight of an older version of Rarity, and seeing the mare pulled at Her heart strings. She and Rarity were probably the closest friends in her group of friends, and other than maybe Rainbow Dash. This was only because the three of them were all located around Canterlot.
"Oh Ember, You should introduce us to your friend that you have brought home," the older mare said with a humble smile. 
Ember put down his brother, and cleared his throat. "Clover, this is my family," He ruffled the mane of his young brother, and he told his name. "This is my youngest brother, Frenzy." He then pointed to the two mares still standing on the staircase. "These are my sisters, Nova and Eclipse." they blinked their green eyes simultaneously, revealing that their eyelids were colored with a charcoal eyeshadow. "And this mare by the kitchen, is my mother, Moonglow." He walked over to the old mare stirring the bowl, and gave her a little side hug. "And family, this is Starswirll's soon to be apprentice, Clover."
"It's nice to meet you," The twins said together. The two mares were starting to give Twilight little goosebumps on the back of her neck. 
"The only family members who aren't here is my Husband, Charcoal, and our oldest son, NightWatch." Moonglow noted. 
"My brother is a guard for the Queen and princess, and my father is a traveling trader." Ember explained. "Our family might be a little on the bigger side, but we love each other and we can surely deal with difficulties when they arise." It was true, they were a family of seven. It kind of reminded Twilight of the Apple family, but even then, most of the Apples didn't live under one roof, since there were so many of them. 
"Clover!" Frenzy shouted. He ran up to her and hugged her leg. "Are you my brother's special-somepony?" He asked. Most of his family was probably wondering the same thing. 
"No, No," Twilight started, "He and I are just friends right now."
"Then why are you here?" He asked. 
"Well, we have to go on a long trip," Twilight explained. 
"Why?"
"Because Starswirll asked us too. "
"Why?"
"Because he wants us to get something for him." Twilight flicked her ear in slight annoyance of the young colt. 
"Why?"
Ember stepped into the conversation as Moonglow walked back into the kitchen. "Because it's just what he needs, Frenzy. When somepony needs something, you shouldn't ask why." 
Frenzy gave a little, "Okay," before trotting off through the kitchen. The twins rolled their eyes, and finished walking down the stairs before sitting themselves down on a couch that was sitting in the living room. 
Ember smiled at Twilight. "I am going to run upstairs and grab a tent and a few blankets. I will grabs some things for you as well. You can make yourself comfortable on the couch, if you would like. I shouldn't be long."
"Are we staying for your family's supper?" Twilight asked, curious. She hasn't eaten in a while, and her time travel earlier almost entirely ruined her appetite. However now that she had been approached with the option of food, she was pretty hungry. 
"Sure, If you want. My mom has a tendency to make extra," He said with a little nod. He flicked his tail, and then ran up stairs. 
Twilight turned to face the twins, and was taken aback to see them giving her a disappointed looking glance. Actually, the longer they looked at her, the more they reminded her of Pinkie's sister, Maud, just duplicated twice. 
"You do know you can take off your cloak, right?" One twin asked, whom Twilight guessed could have been Eclipse, because of the cutie mark seen on her flank. It was of a 3 quarters Red moon, or a lunar eclipse. The other mare had a cutie mark that was of a solar eclipse. Though now that she shout about it, either of them could have been Eclipse. 
"Yes, It's not going to rain in our house, " The other twin said, in a similar tone. 
"Though you never know, It could rain today," Eclipse said, looking at her sister. 
"But whether or not it will rain in our house is the question." Nova said, also turning to her twin.
"It shouldn't."
"But it could."
They turned to look back at Twilight, who was staring at them awkwardly. 
"Sorry, sometimes we can be a little overwhelming." They said, simultaneously. 
"Though you haven't exactly answered us," Eclipse pointed out to Twilight.
"Yes. Why not remove your cloak?" Nova asked. 
Twilight could only sigh, until she noticed the unicorn's auras. They were almost exactly the same, giving off the same vibes. If she was blind, she probably would have thought that they were just one large pony. She just hoped that dinner would be over soon so that she might be able to escape the turquoise eyes of these two ponies. 
Frenzy walked back out of the kitchen and called for his sisters to help with something, so Twilight was left alone in the room. She took the time to observe it, from corner to corner. The couches were of a material she didn't exactly recognize, but it was definitely comfortable. A rug lay on the floor beneath the furniture, one with a simple but also elaborate design or swirls and diamonds. A little brown coffee table sat in the center of the room, and a little vase of daisies was set atop of it. There was a small bookshelf set in one corner, and there was a small fireplace in another. The home was cozy and looked like it would be good for a small family, but probably not a family as big as theirs.
She heard hoofsteps walk down the stairs again, and she smiled at Ember carrying a somewhat bigger bag of things. He tripped at the bottom of the stairs, and Twilight had taken a step forwards to save him, but it was too late. He fell face first on the wooden ground, his bag landing on top of him. He gave a depressed moan, and then Twilight helped him up. She removed the bag from the top of his head, and he laughed. 
"Sorry, I lost my footing," Ember explained, blushing.
"You should be a little more careful. You do that too often and you could get seriously hurt," Twilight commented. 
"I know, I just... Uh," He swished his tail, and he gave a sigh. "Um, Sorry."
"It's alright. So what did you get?" Twilight asked, trying to stray away from the conversation that was starting to grow more awkward. 
"Oh yeah!" He picked up his bag that Twilight had set aside, rustled through it. "I brought the largest tent we had, as well as a mat for sleeping and several blankets. It might get cold, so It's better to be safe rather that sorry." 
"It sounds good. That should be everything we need, other than food." Twilight replied. 
"Well I did also grab a map. I usually know how to navigate well, but it's mainly just for after we get to Everfree."
"Everfree?" Twilight asked. He used the same name that Twilight new from the dark forest just outside of Ponyville. If the forest hadn't always been there, it could change a lot. 
"Yes, the Capital," Ember said, rather slowly, like he was confused. "It's been our capital for many years now, surely you knew that?" 
"Yes, I knew that," Twilight shot out. She needed to act like she at least knew what he was talking about. 
"Alright. We could probably stop there for a night if we wanted to, at least, just before we have to go and face that Dragon. "
Twilight shrugged. "If we need the rest there, then sure. We'll see what time of day we get there."
"Well, yes, though I-" He was cut off by his mother.
"Ember! Clover! Supper is ready!" Moonglow had called from the kitchen. 
Twilight smiled, and walked through the kitchen, missing the disappointed look that Ember had given. They walked through the kitchen to a table set for six, and seeing the dishes set on the table made Twilight's stomach growl even more. There was a bowl of Dandelion stew resting on the table, but there was also a plate of hayrolls and a colorful and sweet looking salad placed there as well. The twins were set next to each other, and Moonglow was on one side of the table, and Frenzy to her right. Twilight sat down across from her, carefully making sure that her cloak was still covering her wings.
Ember had sat down to her left, a smile on his face. Twilight could tell that he was hiding something though, and it was almost dissettling. His aura was not what it had been a few moments ago, and it felt like he was trying to push those vibes away. Twilight's attention was pulled away from him as the unicorns said a quick little prayer, and then got into their food. 
Twilight had taken some of the salad as well as the stew, and she had to admit that it was probably one of the most interesting things she had tasted, but she loved it, and it was probably one of the best things she had tasted in a while. When she finished her serving, she went on to the stew, which was just as equally delicous. She ate her roll as well, and she would sometimes take a peice and dip it into the warm broth. 
Before long they had finished their meal, but then Moonglow had broughten out some kind of pudding, and it too, was delicious. It was vanilla, yes, but it had small peices of cherries mixed with in it, and there was surely some honey in it too. 
After they had finished their meal, Ember had given Twilight a bag, and they took a few bags of food with them, including carrots, apples, spinach, and some green beans. They were pretty much set out, so they did. 
When they left Ember's family's house, the sun was halfway behind the horizion. The colors were warming and comforting, until Twilight thought about princess Celestia. She would be without her for a very long time, and she wouldn't be able to ask for advice from her in anyway. But apon thinking about the sun princess, Twilight also began to wonder how the sun and moon were raised. If the princesses were not here, who did it? Surely it wasn't a single unicorn; one alone wouldn't be powerful enough to do so. The only thing that even remotely made sense was if every unicorn helped raise it. 
Ember commented on the sun, taking twilight aback. "We should probably help with raising the moon here shortly."
Twilight looked at him, and asked, "When do you know when to do so?" 
Ember smiled. "The clock tower chimes, remember? It's the only way that all of the unicorns will help."
Twilight nodded. "Right." She was probably beginning to act a little dumbfounded around him, mainly because she didn't know most of the things they were talking about, like their capital city, or even how they remembers to raise the sun and moon. She had actually even forgotten that they had even done so until the last conversation. 
They made their way west, and they were following the sun's path. They were about a halfr of a mile outside of town when the sun dissapeared behind the horizion. they could somewhat hear the clock echoing behind them, and they knew that it was time to raise the moon. 
They stopped on their path, and Twilight watched as Ember's horn glowed brightly with his magic. Ever so slowly, the moon began float from behind the same horizion line. Twilight only focused on that glowing white orb, and concintrated all her magic in to raising that moon as she joined her partner. Right after she did so, the moon started to move slightly faster, and she knew this was because she was an alicorn.
Her powers had grown since she had become an alicorn, which made her maximum magical abilities increase so much more. While she didn't have enough power as the royal sisters who were born alicorns, Twilight had about half of their magical abilities. 
As soon at the moon had reached a high enough point in the sky, Twilight and Ember let their magic fade away. Ember looked drained of his magic, while Twilight only looked a little tired. Ember gave his companion a smile, and twilight gave him a nod. They traveled a little farther, about another half mile, before they finally set up their tent, and lay down to sleep.